Daniel upsets Shelton to reach Auckland final

Japan's Taro Daniel has advanced to his second ATP Tour final - and first since 2018 - after upsetting top seed Ben Shelton at the ASB Classic in Auckland Friday.

Daniel claimed just the fifth Top 20 win of his career with a 7-5, 7-6(9) result over last year's Australian Open finalist, who is No. 16 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings, just one spot below his career-high.

"It's always difficult to play against Ben because he doesn't give you much rhythm. The ball is really alive and it's about who can put on a little more pressure," Daniel said. "The tie-break was a real dogfight."

In a remarkable reversal of fortune, this time last year, Daniel lost in the first round of Auckland qualifying to World No. 470 Ajeet Rai.

According to Infosys ATP Stats, Daniel had more success on serve than Shelton, winning 81 per cent of first-serve points and 62 per cent of second-serve points and saved all three break points he faced.

Shelton had won their two previous Lexus ATP Head2Head meetings, including a five-set triumph at Wimbledon last year.

Daniel's first and only prior appearance in an ATP Tour final was in Istanbul in 2018, when he captured his lone title. The 30-year-old will play Chilean qualifier Alejandro Tabilo, who upset Next Gen ATP Finals finalist Arthur Fils 6-2, 7-5 after saving six of the seven break points he faced.

Tabilo is the first Chilean to reach a hard-court tour-level final since Fernando Gonzalez made the Beijing Olympics final in 2008. He has risen to a career-high No. 59 in the Pepperstone ATP Live Rankings by reaching the title match. The 26-year-old's only prior appearance in an ATP Tour final was in 2022 in Cordoba (l. Ramos-Vinolas).